[Earlier the same day]
I pace along the NY streets. Something I haven't done in a while since living some 70 miles up north from the city, there everybody drives even to go to the mail box. Using my feet for a change is refreshing.
Kylie. Where on Earth is Hammerstein Ballroom. Somewhere in that general direction. 2 turns later I see the sign with Manhattan Center. Same thing.
And the line. I walk like 100 ft and OK here I am waiting my turn. No, no, no a gentlemen that keeps the line in check points at me - it goes further down, indicating with a scary imprecision towards the 9th Ave. They just have a gap in line to allow traffic from a building. And I walk... There must be a Murphy's law for this. The line reaches 9th Ave and to my utter despair turns and keeps on going. I find its end somewhere close to 34th street - cue for laughs - just when I was about to swear that all 3700 people that can get inside arrived to the concert before me. Oh well.
By the time I get close to enter the venue I'm hearing loud announcements that no recording devices are allowed inside but cameraphones. The Canon I have with me will hardly qualify as one. A dude with stuffed pockets gets searched at the entrance. WTF? But I have my lucky jacket with pockets in impossible locations. The camera disappears.
"I'm Matt Damon". "Oh, Good evening sir, please come right in!"
Well, it wasn't that smooth but I guess my look said that I'm gonna jasonborne them if they touch me (I'll let you know when the showing off mode is off). I'm in.
Kylie, Kylie, Kylie... Programs, t-shirts, various I don't-know-what all Kylie. Priced as usual for such events. Actually not bad.
And now it shows how lucky I was. On ticketmaster it wasn't anywhere that the floor level is gonna be an open floor (standing). By choosing 2nd mezzanine I have a perfect view and sit down. Granted the seating was kind of hocus-pocus, except for the first 3 rows that were reserved everything else was general admission. Hammerstein is in line with the idea Kylie talked about, using somewhat smaller venues, so you're rather close regardless where you are.
The concert could've easily be held on open arenas. The production could easily accommodate larges spaces. It was almost overkill to have it in a smaller place. However the laser beams were surreal cool in such a venue. They had them hit the walls between the 1st and 2nd level so the people won't get "targeted", but actually creating a midair floor of light, terrific as a sight from above.
Kylie sung the old hits, the new hits, the hits in production
, covered 'Vogue' (actually it was a pretty good cover). I was pleasantly surprised by the concert version of certain songs, 'Confide In Me' got some cool guitar riffs and so on. Also did a very slow version of 'I should be so lucky', almost a capella , which was interesting but a bit strangely placed in the timeline, too close to the end. There were some backing vocals / vocal effects pre-recorded but otherwise everything was live, with Kylie remaining pitch-perfect throughout the concert, including going for some sustained high-notes a couple of times.
I guess that is why her dancing wasn't so choreographed like I remember it but more like a free style dance routine. Oh and, not to forget, she did 'wiggle it'!
(and the old question came back - the biggest asset of Australia is...?)
Best performance of the night: Kids. Everybody got up with the guitar riffs and wild lighting used and the building looked one more time on the verge of collapsing. The people on the floor, the 2 levels, the balconies on the sides, all full with people up on their feet waiving frantically.
The sound. Let's say I appreciated more of the sound of real instruments. Generally, the sound would've worked for an arena not a closed theater. I was expecting the paint to come off the walls any minute. Granted I have a rather sensible ear, I pick up details without needing high loudness. Well they took care of that!
There was a sensible difference in sound between the songs where they played live instruments (especially the drums) and where the sound machines were used. Live instruments sounded loud without going booming. The sound machines performed the equivalent of a non-stop punching in the stomach, together with a warped version of the wall of sound technique that wiped out any differences between anything and anybody. Everything, vocals, rhythms, etc got leveled at the same, 'are you nuts?' volume setting.
But it may be just me; I'm a dinosaur from immemorial times when louder didn't automatically mean better.
All in all it was a grand show that would've worked better in larger venues. So that begs the question: as reports come in that this short tour was a clear success why Kylie never became an established artist stateside? When I say 'Can't Get Out Of My Head', (exactly) half my friends don't know what I'm talking about and never heard the song, while the other half goes Kylie Minogue on the spot. So CGYOOMH got to No.1 in America only on Billboard Hot Dance chart, and just 7 on the Hot 100. While owning the world everywhere from Australia to UK.
It remains a mystery - well, to me - what succeeds on the US music market.
Confetti everywhere! (pictures later)
![](http://www.mf-international.com/spacer.gif"){kind=spacer}
Cutting edge props and costumes ... plus she looks fantastic. 
![[heart]](images/smiles/icon2_heart.gif)
That last video from quite a few years ago (the Agent Provocateur ad) is pure evil. 
Kylie has invaded MFI town! 
